


Pillows

by strawberrylace



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M, Sharing a Bed, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-01 18:03:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20262244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberrylace/pseuds/strawberrylace
Summary: The ubiquitous "OTP forced to share a bed" one shot





	Pillows

**Author's Note:**

> I'm surprised it's taken me this long to write one of these. I hope you all enjoy!

There was no way that Steve was going to be able to drive the entire night. His eyes were starting to feel heavy as he drove along the empty country roads. At this rate, he was going to swerve off into a ditch if he didn't stop for somewhere to rest.

There had been a bit of a late start with his drive to his friend Carol's wedding. First, he couldn't get out of work on time. Then he forgot to get gas and almost ran out right as he was about to hit the highway. After that quick stop, he got stuck in traffic for nearly an hour. It proved to be a stressful start to what should've been a fun weekend. 

Luckily, he had someone to keep him company. Bucky needed a ride to Carol's wedding and suggested that they go together. Steve couldn't have accepted that offer with such urgency. However, Bucky ran into some car troubles before the wedding so Steve offered to drive. After all, they had already agreed to go together. 

Steve couldn't believe how patient Bucky had been throughout this afternoon, which made the trip much more pleasant and less stressful. Bucky played everything all so cool, even offering to chip in for Steve's gas money. Still, Steve couldn't help but feel a bit stressed over the fact that here he was, driving the guy he had harbored a huge crush on for so long and everything that could go wrong was going wrong. He was certain that Bucky liked him back, or so he thought. His friends certainly seemed to agree. Still, showing up to a wedding together was a big deal, even if they weren't "together together". 

Steve saw a sign for the next exit and made the turn. Surely this town had to have a motel, Steve thought to himself. He looked over to his side to find Bucky was already asleep, face pressed against the window and lightly snoring. Good grief, he was cute when he slept, Steve smirked. To his right, he saw a pink and blue neon sign for a motel. Starlight Motel. He pulled right into the parking lot and parked right in front of the lobby office. Just as he pulled the key out of the ignition, Bucky began to stir. 

"Hey," Steve whispered, gently tapping his shoulder. "You awake?" 

"Hmm?" Bucky sat up and looked at the window, where he left his face imprint. "Oh wow, we're here?" He looked around at the parking lot, noticing the variety of cars parked around them. "Doesn't look too sketchy." 

"It was the first place I saw," Steve shrugged. "What's the worst that could happen?" 

"You've ever seen Psycho?" 

\-------------------------------------------- 

The lady behind the front desk didn't seem to fit the Norman Bates profile. A young woman in her early 30's, she seemed rather bored watching a Dateline rerun on the television when Steve and Bucky walked in. 

"Hi," Steve greeted. "Do you happen to have a room for tonight? We're just passing through." 

"Sure," she replied, her eyes still on the television. She looked back at the board behind her to see if there was a key available. Number 9 hung up by itself. She grabbed it and slapped it down on the counter in front of Steve and Bucky. 

"Just so you know," she said, "there's only one bed. Hope that's not a problem." 

"Uh..." Steve looked hesitantly at Bucky. This wasn't the ideal situation he saw himself with Bucky, especially when he wasn't entirely sure those feelings were reciprocated. However, it was only going to be awkward if he made things awkward. 

"It's not a problem," Bucky spoke up, looking back at Steve for confirmation. "Really, we'll be fine. It's just one night, right?" 

"Yeah," Steve nodded, slightly sure of himself. "Just one night." 

"Cool." The lady didn't seemed fazed in the slightest. In fact, she would've rather have gotten back to her Dateline. "That'll be 50 bucks. Need anything else?" 

"Yes, um, could we get some extra pillows, if that's not any trouble?" 

\--------------------------------------------------- 

With a pillow in each of their arms, Steve and Bucky found their room to be a bit more cozy than either of them had bargained for. The bed was also on the smaller side, at least a full size. The decor of the room looked as if it was taken from the set of a Doris Day comedy, perhaps to match the aesthetic of the neon sign outside. There were no visible stains that either of them had to worry about, which was a plus. It was a step above the typical seedy fare of cheap motels that one would typically find in the middle of nowhere.

While Bucky went to the bathroom to undress and brush his teeth, Steve was pacing around the room in his just his t-shirt and boxers, holding onto the pillows. He wondered how this bed situation was going to work. A full bed would give them some room to share but what were the proper boundaries? Who would get what side? Did Bucky even want the bed and only said that sharing a bed would be no problem to try to be polite to the lady at the desk?

"You okay?"

Steve turned to see Bucky leaning against the wall, wearing a grey tank top and a pair of boxer briefs 

"Uh, yeah, I think so." Steve was clutching onto the pillows tighter against his chest, trying not to look so flustered. "I was just wondering how to um...you know..." 

"Oh," Bucky understood. "Yeah, I mean, we've got the pillows. I have no problem with sharing the bed if you're okay with it." 

"I'm okay with it if you are." 

"Yeah," Bucky smiled sheepishly. 

Steve set the pillows down right in the middle of the bed, forming a line for each side. Steve ended up taking the left side, while Bucky took the right. The mattress was not too stiff but too soft either. Steve scooted as close as he could to the edge of the bed, even with the pillows dividing their side. Part of him just didn't want to take up too much room, but mainly, he just didn't want to make it more awkward than he was already making it. Bucky, on the other hand, fell fast asleep on his side of the bed. Steve lay awake for a moment, looking back over at Bucky. He couldn't believe he was here sharing a bed with Bucky, but it wasn't how he imagined it would be. It all felt so weird and the only one who was making it weird was him. Trying not to think too much of it, Steve turned over on his side and fell asleep. 

When Steve woke up the next morning, he felt a pair of strong arms tangled up around his side. He fluttered open his eyes to find that Bucky's arms were holding him, feeling the light snoring on his back. This was most definitely not a dream. Somehow, they had both managed to find their way towards the middle of the bed, the pillows no longer dividing them. Steve tried to move his head but when he did, Bucky was beginning to move. When his eyes opened, he looked down and saw that he was holding Steve. 

"Oh shit," Bucky whispered, slowly pulling his arms away. "I thought I was holding onto the pillows last night." 

Steve was surprised to see Bucky get embarrassed. He was usually seen as so cool and chill. But then again, there was the whole bed situation that was at hand. 

"It's okay," Steve reassured him. "I actually...didn't mind." 

Bucky narrowed his eyes. "Really?" 

"Yeah," Steve laughed nervously. "I mean, I..." 

"Steve." 

Steve sat up on the bed. 

"I know you like me, and, trust me, the feeling is mutual," Bucky smiled. "Sure, it's awkward sharing a bed with someone you like for the first time, but don't worry, you were fine."

So there it was: Bucky liked Steve back. He was so happy he could've danced in the room, but alas, he had two left feet, so he was fine with just breathing a heavy sigh of relief. 

"Well, that makes this a lot less awkward then," Steve replied. 

"Yeah, you weren't subtle at all on the awkwardness," Bucky chuckled. "But in all fairness, I was hoping to tell you how I felt about you at the wedding. You know, for romantic purposes." 

"Looks like I beat you to it." 

They sat there on the bed in a comfortable silence for a while. The blankets were a bundled mess and the pillows all over. So the moment wasn't exactly how either of them wanted it to play out, but it was surprising to see what one bed could do to make two people come together.


End file.
